On July 19th, I switched places - from wedding officiant to groom! Suddenly I had to take some of my own advice about keeping calm and staying in the moment. And a few things went wrong too. When the flowers arrived, no one was there to accept them. My bride got a very noticeable lip stick smear on the front of her dress just before leaving home for the ceremony. At the church, I immediately misplaced the bag with the license, a lot of cash and gift cards, and our copies of the vows we were to say to each other. At the restaurant the air conditioning wasn't working in one area, and we got fed after most of our guests. There’s more, but you get the idea. Not everything went exactly like we had planned. (“White water” already!)
On the other hand, both we and our guests loved the ceremony (We found the vows!), and two friends did a beautiful hymn they learned just for us. Another dear friend actually made us our three-tier chocolate cake – the best wedding cake I’ve ever had, and my new wife and I actually pulled off the “dancing with the stars” dance routine we practiced so hard. (You have to understand, I really don’t dance.) Several people have said since, that it was the best wedding they ever attended, and as for us, we had a blast. Others had told me that all the stress would melt away once the ceremony was over, and I can testify that it really works that way.
Now it’s almost three months later, and I would like to recommend marriage to those considering it. It’s definitely not something to rush into “unadvisedly or lightly”, but when the right person and the right time come along, it’s ... nice.
I’d like to give thanks to God, for his grace in it all, for our great friends, who celebrated so joyously with us and helped us in so many ways, for our family members who supported us and assisted us, for our many vendors (who will be blogged about more later) and for Pastor Tom Carpino, our friend and super special wedding officiant.
So, do I know what you’re going through for your Long Island or New York City wedding? Probably more than you think. I hope that knowledge will make me an even better wedding officiant myself – your very own super special wedding officiant!

Pastor Bill serves families in the Greater New York area including Long Island (Nassau County and Suffolk County), Queens, Brooklyn, New York City (Manhattan), and Westchester County. If you’re thinking of using a Judge for your wedding, or a Justice of the Peace – or if you’re thinking of going to city hall for your wedding – or perhaps you’re working on a last minute wedding plan – in any case, Pastor Bill would love to speak with you. Pastor Bill is also available for families that have suffered the loss of a loved one and are planning a funeral.